The present invention relates to a weapon utilized for marksmanship training and more particularly to a laser small arms firing system for use in training.
Several U.S. Patents have disclosed the use of a portable hand held laser weapon for actual combat use and for training purposes. U.S. Pat. No. 3,404,350 discloses a portable laser system placed in a pistol configurated housing with an aiming telescope. The apparatus taught by this particular patent emits a laser beam which is powered from a battery located outside of the weapon housing. U.S. Pat. No. 3,335,934 also discloses the general concept of utilizing a laser in a pistol. U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,404,305, 3,454,898 and 3,478,278 disclose the use of lasers in connection with rifles or carbines.
A rifle training device is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 3,792,535. In this patent a cumbersome high voltage laser system including a transmitter, receiver and hit indicator is mounted to a rifle barrel. A retroreflective means is provided in a target used with the rifle to indicate that the target had been hit with the laser beam.
Another U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,033 discloses a training device used on a tank in which a laser unit is mounted on the gun barrel of the tank with the power supply for firing the laser unit being contained in a housing which is mounted on the tank. The laser beam is fired at a target provided with a reflective surface which when hit by the laser beam produces a flash resembling that of a projectile hit.
It is also known in the art to use light beams in shooting galleries and other amusement areas to fire at darkened targets containing photosensitive cells. A typical such application is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,220,732 in which a strobe light with suitable optics is mounted in the barrel of a gun and is activated by a trigger switch which is connected to circuitry and a power source mounted in the barrel of the gun. In this patent the target has a photoelectric cell mounted therein which is energized when impinged by a light source to activate a solenoid so that the target is displaced from its original position indicating that a hit has been scored.
While the above disclosed prior art does show the use of laser weapons and light sources for simulation of small arms firing, none of these weapons provides a safe realistic simulation of an actual firing of a weapon and quick determination of whether the target is hit nor can they be used to fire blank or live ammunition.
One of the inherent dangers associated with laser implementation, is possible eye damage including burns which occur under collimated radiation from an intense point source. The present invention eliminates this problem via the low output power of the selected laser and the optics employed to direct the beam. Thus the system is safe from eye damage in a man-against-man combat scenario. Calculation of eye damage irradiance shows that this system is completely safe and that the threshold of eye damage can be approached only if the operator holds the laser optics directly in front of his eye and fires directly into the pupil.
The present invention besides its important safety aspects provides a highly realistic simulation of the use of small arms allowing law enforcement scenarios or war game exercises to be played out as the weapon can utilize normal blank ammunition. The blank ammunition is provided for any particular caliber of weapon and is used in combination with the laser pulse which is simultaneously fired with the blank. Individuals or targets have a portable detector mounted thereon so that an audible or visual signal is activated if the pulse strikes the sensor element. It should be particularly noted that the present invention is significant because it can be used in artificial light or broad daylight without fear of non-laser simulation of the sensor cell worn by the individual.
The weight of the laser weapon is almost identical with the original weight of the factory small arms weapon so that the laser weight addition is negligible, with the weapons overall balance being maintained along with its original mechanical strength. The CMOS integrated circuit and pulse electronics of the laser consume less than two milliamperes so that the internally contained batteries have a long life.
The laser adapted weapon is completely portable and its circuitry and power source is entirely housed within the weapon stock or butt grips. The laser unit is also easily adapted to any standard weapon.
The laser adapted weapon is designed to be used with blanks, it can be used with live ammunition as well as for "dry fire" exercise to reduce training costs. This multiple capability allows the trainee to accurately detect the weapons's aiming point without firing a round and increases his attention to the instructors instructions. Thus during the early training period the number of costly rounds which would normally be fired to achieve a specified level of marksmanship are greatly decreased. Another cost factor which must be taken into account is the target costs for pop up and other moving targets which can be reused with the present invention.
Since the power supply and supply circuitry is entirely contained in the weapon and the target detector can be carried on the individual who is connected with the particular scenario or war game, realism is added to the exercise.
Thus it can be seen that the function modularity, three dimensional mechanization, packaging, component selection, low power drain, light weight and performance meet all of the requirements for a low cost effective training weapon.